Video: Japanese skating rink forced to shut down after crazily freezing 5,000 fish under ice

Even by the standard of wild ideas, this one was bizarre.

Imagine gliding through the sea and discovering a variety of sea creatures – from big whale sharks to tiny horse mackerel. This pretty much sounds like an aquarium.

But Space World, a Japanese theme park wanted to start a different kind of aquarium – one made of ice.

So they created a skate park with a variety of fish, frozen under the ice rink. Some 5,000 fish to be precise.

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And this very feature backfired in the most embarrassing way for the theme park.

Images from Facebook page of Space World (now deleted) via Japanese news site NetlaboImages from Facebook page of Space World (now deleted) via Japanese news site Netlabo

These Facebook images posted on October 26 attracted anger rather than interest, which forced the park to delete the images. Netizens fumed with comments such as “disrespect for life” and “lack of morality”, which forced the theme park to shut down the skating ring.

Images from Facebook page of Space World (now deleted) via Japanese news site Netlabo

According to the public relations officer, no live fish were frozen. The dead fish were bought from a local market which were later in the ice. He told a local news site, “Many of these fish don’t meet standards for selling to customers. And the big fish like whale sharks, sharks, and rays aren’t real, they’re simply photos that were blown up and embedded in the ice.”

The theme park in Kitakyushu City aimed to be “not only Japan’s first, but undeniably the world’s first” ice aquariam. It may well be the world’s last.